Anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory effects of Trigonella foenum-graecum Linnaeus, 1753 (Fenugreek) seed extract in experimental pulmonary fibrosis

Abstract

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is the most common idiopathic interstitial pneumonia. A large part of research focusing on the pathogenesis of IPF suggested that oxidative stress has been implicated in the pathogenesis of bleomycin induced lung fibrosis. We therefore examined whether fenugreek Trigonella foenum-graecum Linnaeus, 1753 and its phenolylic extract inhibits bleomycin induced lung fibrosis in rats. Forty male Wistar rats were given a single dose of bleomycin (4 mg/kg, intratracheally). After 2 weeks of treatment, both fenugreek seed polyphenol extract (FSPE) and fenugreek powder supplementation (FPS) significantly reduced MDA (0.280±0.053 and 0.205±0.031 nmol/mg protein respectively) and increased TAS (0.888±0.086 and 0.695±0.086 mmol/l) in comparison to control groups (0.434±0.043 and 0.417±0.034 nmol/mg protein for MDA; 0.345±0.043 and 0.561±0.050 mmol/l for TAS). The restoration of oxidant/antioxidant balance was seen concretely through the diminution of inflammation in treated groups (3.29±0.49 and 4.29±0.76) in contrast to untreated groups (4.70±0.48 and 5.00±0.00). TGFβ was increased only in inflammatory infiltrate of parenchyma lung. In spite of these results, no correlation was found with increasing fibrosis, suggesting that a direct role for inflammation in pulmonary fibrosis is unlikely. The data suggest, in the first hand, that fenugreek’s polyphenol has a potent antioxidant activity and therefore has a potent anti-inflammatory activity against bleomycin induced lung fibrosis model in rats, and in the second hand, they confirm that besides inflammation, other factors probably interfere in the pathogenesis of pulmonary fibrosis. Key words: Lung fibrosis, fenugreek, polyphenols, bleomycin®, oxidative stress, total antioxidant status (TAS), malondialdehyde (MDA), transforming growth factor-beta (TGFβ), rats.